The OZ Museum
Features one of the largest privately owned collections of Oz memorabilia in the world. From the earliest books of Oz creator, L. Frank Baum to today’s collectibles that can be purchased in Auntie Em’s Gift Shop, visitors both young and “young at heart” will treasure a visit to the
Oz Museum.
511 Lincoln Ave. - (785) 458-8686
Mon–Sat 10am to 5pm, Sun Noon to 5pm
www.OZmuseum.com
Admission:
$7 (age 13 and up), $4 (age 4 to 12)
Columbian Theatre, Museum & Art Center
Check out the beautifully restored murals, and other artifacts, from the 1893 Columbian Exposition and World’s Fair, or catch a live theatre performance in the Peddicord Playhouse in this renovated 19th Century opera house. The first floor gallery features special exhibits.
521 Lincoln Ave.
(785) 456-2029
www.ColumbianTheatre.com
Tues–Fri 10am to 5pm
Sat 10am to 3pm
Wamego City Park
This 12-acre park, just a block east of the business district, features a stone shelter house, 2-acre pond, Olympic-sized swimming pool, tennis courts, playground equipment and horseshoe pits. The park, beautifully maintained and groomed, has long been considered one of the best picnic spots in the state.
Schonhoff Dutch Mill
The state’s only working stone windmill, stands sentinel on the east edge of picturesque Wamego City Park. The mill, built in 1879, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The mill is still used to grind wheat to flour.
HIstoric Prairie Town
On the eastern edge of the City Park sits the historic Prairie Village and Museum, providing visitors a sense of the history of Wamego and the surrounding areas.
East 4th St. - (785) 456-2040
Mon–Sat 10am to 4pm
Sun 1 to 4pm and tours by appointment
Ditto Leach House
Home of Dr. Bill and Dr. Rose Ditto
Louis B. Leach, a prominent Wamego businessman, built the Leach House around 1890. Leach designed the house from memory after visiting villas in the suburbs of Messina, on the island of Sicily. Wamego residents, Dr. Bill and Rose Ditto, began the painstaking restoration of the 22-room home in 1987. The stately home now stands beautifully restored and tours are available by appointment. 910 5th St. -- (785) 456-7688
Birthplace of
Walter P. Chrysler
Wamego is the birthplace of Walter P. Chrysler, the founder of the Chrysler Corporation. Currently the original structure is being restored and renovated in preparation for its move to the corner of highways 24 & 99. After the relocation, the Chrysler home will become the new Pottawatomie County visitors center.
Kansas Territorial Press
Historic Printing museum dedicated to printing equipment from the mid-1800’s – 1900’s. The collection includes table top press to large newspaper presses. The collection also displays a rare unitype simplex type setter.
Monday – Saturday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm Sunday 1:00 – 5:00 pm
810 4th St 785-456-7450
Other attractions in the area:
Beecher Bible and Rifle Church
A short drive south of town on highway 99, then a jog west on K-18, leads to the historic church established in late June, 1857, by Free State sympathizers. The great minister from Brooklyn, the Reverend Henry Ward Beecher, supplied money for Sharps rifles and 25 Bibles, thus the name, Beecher Bible and Rifle Church.
The Oregon Trail
The historic trail, which was instrumental in the movement west, passed just a few miles north of Wamego. Actual ruts of the thousands of wagons traveling through the area can still be seen. Other remnants of the trail include the Louis Vieux Cemetery, near the banks of the Vermilion River east of Louisville.
Further east, along Oregon Trail Road, sits the Oregon Trail Nature Park. This spot offers hiking and picnic areas, as well as a panoramic view of the Kansas River valley and the Jeffrey Energy Center lake, which provides a year-round home for water fowl. Check out the unique mural depicting the history of the area on the silo at the entrance of the park.
